The 1940s were undoubtedly a revolutionary era for many incidents, including war, inventions, discoveries, and fashion.
If you’re looking for vintage hairstyles for your long locks, the 40s long hairstyles will give you some great options.
Amazing Long Hairstyles from The 40s to Try
Women loved being more feminine, elegant, and formal in the 40s. Doing curls in long hair was the norm, but it wasn’t all that the hairstyles were restricted to.
Do you have long hair and want to try some 40s long hairstyles that’ll make you look vintage and cool? We’ve got you! Check the hairstyles below.
1. Victory Rolls
Victory rolls is a classic 40s hairstyle that many women loved to make back in the day. If you want a vintage hairstyle, try this look. Victory rolls are obtained by starting to roll the hair from the bottom and then pinning them upwards.
You can also part the hair in two sides and roll each side of the hair towards each other. Roll the hair by using a curling iron or hair roller. Use hairspray to keep the hair in place. This is the best hairstyle to keep your hair away from your face.
2. Pageboy
This hairstyle is also well-suited for long hair. It is kind of the opposite of Victory Rolls. Women from the 40s used smooth and curled rolls to make this hairstyle. The ends of the hair were curled towards the underside to give hair the perfect look.
The side part pageboy gained a lot of popularity when a lot of women celebrities started wearing this hairstyle at different events.
3. Pin Curls
There were a lot of variations of pin curls back in the 40s, and there are even more types of them in 2024. The name indicates that the curls were pinned at the front of the head with hairpins that would keep the curls in place.
To make this hairstyle, you need to part your hair into different sections depending on the number of curls you want. After curling the hair, pin them inwardly at different parts of your head. Finish the look by curling the ends of your remaining long hair.
4. Combed Through Curls
This hairstyle is used to give the illusion of having natural curls. After curling the hair with hair rollers, you have to comb through those curls to give them a smooth and natural finish.
It is best to set your hair with a styling spray so your curls don’t get ruined when you comb the hair. This was an everyday look for women with long and short hair in the 40s. It was easy to style and manage and looked pretty on every kind of hair.
5. Regular Rolls
Regular Rolls were a great hairstyle for long hair in the 40s. It was usually made with just one roll at one side of the head. The hair was rolled with a hair roller. The rest of the hair was also curled, but it was kept open.
6. Classic Hollywood Waves
Classic Hollywood Wave is undoubtedly a great hairstyle from the 40s, which is still alive and thriving. In the 40s, women used to wear different hair accessories to style the Hollywood Wave. This hairstyle was mostly for parties and gatherings where women had to look their best.
Now, to have these waves, you can use a large barrel curling iron to get the curls. Pin those curls for some minutes and use hairspray to keep them in place. After some time, remove the pins, and you will get the waves.
How Did Women Style Their Long Hair in the 1940s?
As women used to prefer curling their long hair in the 40s, there were several methods to curl the hair according to the type of curls or rolls they wanted. The most common method was pin curls. Women had to pin their hair on the top with hairpins after curling it. Another easy and common method was using hair rollers.
Some women also used to finger-curl their hair to produce waves. The waves in the hair were styled by lathering some gel or hair product in the hair and then using fingers or a comb to transform the hair into waves.
All of the styling methods for long hair were time-consuming and needed patience. Now, curls can easily be done with curling rods or heatless hair curlers. Women in the 40s didn’t have these necessities, so they used to do everything they could to style their hair perfectly.
40s long hairstyles are always going to be remembered as hairstyles that introduced many modern hairstyles in women.